In Time
by alllovelost13
Summary: A strange sickness plagues feudal Japan. Kagome sets out to eradicate it and save the lives of humans and demons alike. The mighty Sesshomaru joins her in an attempt to save his people from extinction. Sess/Kag


Obviously, I don't own Inuyasha. I mean, I'm posting this on a FAN FICTION website. So...duh.

* * *

In Time

Chapter One:

Dappled sunlight littered the lush grass of a small clearing in a great forest. From the towering trees above, little songbirds could be heard, their musical tweets suffusing the early morning air. One bird flitted from its perch in a gnarled oak to alight upon an old wooden well in the center of the clearing. It pecked at a row of marching ants on the lip of the chasm, savoring its breakfast.

Suddenly a bright blue flash of light burst forth from the depths of the well, pink sparks crackling along the wood. The bird squawked madly and leapt from its perch, propelling itself into the sky. Its companions in the trees followed suit and took flight as well, all squawking angrily at the blue light that had disturbed their peaceful morning.

Amidst the shower of glittering pink dust left in the blue lights wake, a head of ebony hair emerged near the lip of the well. Pulling herself up using the sturdy vines that snaked down into the old shaft, a young woman lugging a disgustingly yellow pack grunted slightly in her effort to extricate herself from the magic well.

Huffing as she planted her feet firmly on the ground, she shifted her pack to a more comfortable position on her back. 'I really need to put a ladder in there. Those vines don't make for an easy climb.' She glared over her shoulder at the yellow monstrosity. 'Especially with this thing in tow.'

Sighing, she brushed her thoughts aside and headed east down a small well worn foot path. Smiling as the small buildings of Edo came into view, she made her way towards a moderately sized house on the outskirts of the village.

Sliding the shoji screen open she slipped off her shoes, facing them outward and looked around. Plopping her pack onto the smooth wooden floor, she called, "Guys! I'm back! Who wants pocky?!"

"MEEE!"

Seconds later, a young boy with elf-like ears came bursting into the room, his green eyes brimming with anticipation. "Me! I want some Kagome, please!?" His eyes grew wide, and he clasped his hands together in front of his chest.

Laughing at the boy for begging, Kagome ruffled his fiery red hair and bent over her pack, rummaging until she found the box of sweets. Handing it to him, she replied, "Here ya go Shippo. Enjoy." He took the box happily and ripped open the packaging, shoveling the sweet sticks into his mouth. "Where is everyone else?" She asked.

Shippo swallowed and wiped the excess chocolate from his mouth with his sleeve, causing it to smear on his pudgy left cheek. "Oh they're around here somewhere. I think Miroku is still at the spring with Sango filling our water skins. And Inuyasha is..." He paused to sniff the air delicately. "On his way here now."

Not a minute later, the shoji screen opened again and a barefooted young man clothed in the brilliant red of the fire rat stepped in. The two soft white triangles atop his head stood arrect in assiduity. His golden eyes locked onto Kagome, slitted pupils dilating in the dimmer light. "Finally you're back. I was about to come get you and drag your ass out of the future. To hell with your stupid showers, we got shit to do!"

Kagome's face fell into her palm and she sighed. "Inuyasha, after three years of this, I had hoped you might learn some patience. Or at least learned to quit berating me."

"We'll someone's gotta keep ya on your toes woman! You're so damn slow, what else am I supposed to say?"

"Oh, how about, "Hey Kagome! Glad you're back. Let's go hunt some jewel shards!" or even just, "Finally you're back, let's go!" I have half a mind to make you eat dirt right now just for calling my showers stupid. I know you didn't think they were stupid after Souta spilled fish sauce all over you a few weeks ago."

"Yeah, well, that shit stank! I was just glad to get it off."

Kagome rolled her eyes at his extenuation. "Whatever, I'm sure it took an hour to scrub off some fish sauce."

Inuyasha flattened his ears against his skull at her biting sarcasm and huffed. "Keh, let's just get the others and go. I'm tired of this stupid conversation anyway." He exited the home and Kagome smiled at the familiar 'thud' of him landing on the roof to sulk.

As she turned to give Shippo another box of pocky, three more entered the home. A young man and a young woman slipped off their sandals while a small firecat, that was perched atop the woman's shoulder, mewled softly at Kagome. The handsome man dressed in monk robes advanced on her, his arms wide and eyes twinkling.

"Ah, Lady Kagome! So wonderful to see you again!" The mischievous man tried to snake his arms around her in a mock hug, but Kagome swatted his arm.

"Oh no you don't, Miroku. I know that look. Plus, Sango's handprint is a dead giveaway."

The monk smiled sheepishly, rubbing the red feminine handprint on his cheek. He had forgotten about the incriminating evidence on his face.

"Well you know he deserved it." The woman who walked in with the monk glared in his direction before hugging Kagome. "And this early too. We're gonna have to start a night watch to keep him from fondling us in our sleep." Sango winked at Kagome and the two women giggled.

"Whath tho fundy?" Shippo asked around a mouthful of strawberry pocky. He looked curiously at the women as they giggled again.

"Oh nothing Shippo. You ready to go?" Kagome closed her pack before slinging it over her shoulders and turned to the kit. At his enthusiastic nod, she motioned for him to hop on her pack. He jumped up and sat comfortably on the yellow bag happily munching on his treats.

They all slipped their shoes back on and exited the home. Inuyasha jumped off of the roof and landed lightly next to the group. As they were making last minute checks to ensure they had all they needed for the journey, an old woman with an eye-patch came hobbling up to them.

"Off to find more shards eh?" Her good eye scrutinized Inuyasha before turning to Kagome. "Did ye practice like I told ye?"

Kagome hugged the older woman and replied, "Yes Kaede, and I'm getting so much better. Look." She then brought her hand up in front of her, and shaped it as though she were holding a ball. She sucked in a deep breath and closed her eyes briefly as she concentrated. Kagomes eyes snapped open as her palm began to glow blue. The blue glow receded to the center of her hand forming a perfect sphere. The sphere of miko energy began to float a few inches above her palm. It crackled with pink sparks shooting out here and there. Suddenly it shot forward at a blinding speed and exploded against a nearby tree. Through a shower of pink sparkles, a charred hole could be seen on the trunk.

"Ah wonderful! Ye are learning quickly child. Keep at it and ye will surpass even my late sister!" Kaede eyed the miko proudly, as her thoughts turned to that of her dead sibling.

Many of the villagers of Edo thought that Kagome was the reincarnation of their previous miko, the late Lady Kikyo. She had once protected the village and the sacred jewel, the Shikon no Tama, until she fell in love with the half demon Inuyasha, who had been trying unsuccessfully to take the jewel from her to become a full blooded demon.

Fifty years ago, Kikyo had thought to end her solitary life as a miko, and was going to give Inuyasha the sacred jewel, so that he might make a wish upon it to become human and live his life with her. Unfortunately, she had been caring for a wounded renegade, who went by the name of Onigumo. He had been injured quite severely and thus could not move. He could only talk and soon fell in love with the beautiful priestess himself. An evil and greedy man at heart, he tried to persuade Kikyo to give him the jewel so that he might harness its power for himself and keep Kikyo as his prize. Naturally the good priestess denied his wishes sending Onigumo into a rage. While Kikyo was gone to give Inuyasha the jewel, he desperately allowed a swarm of lesser demons to take possession of his withered body in exchange for the power to take what he desired. Thus the demon Naraku was born. He knew that Kikyo was going to give Inuyasha the jewel out of her love for him, and decided to turn the two against each other.

He disguised himself as the half demon and attacked Kikyo, mortally wounding her. Tragically, Kikyo truly believed that it had been Inuyasha who had attacked her, and sealed the unfortunate hanyou to a tree with a magical arrow that was intended to trap him in a deep sleep for eternity. She then requested that she be burned with the jewel when she died, so that it would pass out of the living world once and for all. Her younger sister Kaede carried out her last wishes, and the jewel faded from existence.

Five hundred years later, Kagome, who had lived a completely normal life in modern Tokyo, soon found her world turned upside down. She was pulled into an old well on her family's property by a centipede demon, something she had always thought to live only in myth. She emerged from the well five hundred years in the past, a mere fifty years after the tragic story of Kikyo and Inuyasha had concluded. She soon found out that the Shikon no Tama was inside her after Mistress Centipede ripped it from her belly. During the fight, Kagome accidentally released Inuyasha from his slumber and he easily defeated the centipede. But he quickly turned on Kagome to take the jewel, thinking her to be Kikyo. Kaede, who was now an old healer, taught Kagome how to subdue Inuyasha before he could kill her. Unfortunately the jewel again was stolen, causing Inuyasha and Kagome to team up. Sadly, in her effort to retrieve it, Kagome only made the situation worse by shattering the jewel into fragments that shot in all directions across Japan. Ever since then, she and Inuyasha, along with the friends they made on the way, had been traveling to recover all the fragments and put an end to the demon who had started the whole mess, Naraku.

During these travels however, a witch named Urasue, sought to bring Kikyo back to life to do her bidding. She created a clay body and trapped Kagome's soul inside it thus awakening the dead priestess. However, Kagome recovered her soul, causing the clay Kikyo to rely on shinidamachu to retrieve the souls of young women to keep her alive. Now, only a shell of the woman who once was, she wished only to take Inuyasha back to hell with her.

Although Kagome was the spitting image of Kikyo, Kaede refused to believe that the young girl was her elder sister reincarnated, and that her sister was 'alive'. As far as the old healer was concerned, a hate-filled shell of a woman long dead was no sister to her. Kagome had also proven, at least to Kaede, that she was indeed her own person and not the shadow of a once great priestess.

Kaede closed her eye and bowed her head in respect for her late sister, as the story of her fate caused a wave of sadness to wash over her. She looked at Kagome again, who had not noticed the old woman's momentary lapse in focus, and smiled at her.

Kagome's face lit up. "Thanks! Who would have guessed I just needed some practice?"

"Yeah, Kagome blew up a tree with a light ball, whoop-de-do. Can we GO now?" Inuyasha glared at the women impatiently, a scowl on his face.

Kagome shot him a glare of her own. "We can leave in just a minute, Inuyasha."

Inuyasha glared back. "Look, I'm tired of waiting around on YOU to go get the shards of a jewel YOU broke!"

"Oh we won't be waiting on me at all. We'll be waiting on the idiot with dog ears."

Inuyasha's face contorted in slight confusion before realization dawned on him. He began to wave his hands in front of his chest. "Oh Kagome, I-"

"Sit."

The rosary beads around his neck glowed a violent blue and slammed his face into the dirt, causing a small cloud of debris to erupt from the ground where he had just been standing. Shippo chortled hysterically on Kagome's pack and almost choked on his pocky.

As much as she hated hurting someone, Kagome was silently thankful for the rosary beads. 'He really needs to learn when to shut his mouth on his own, otherwise I'm going to have to keep doing it for him.' She thought to herself and frowned. 'And I'm pretty sure my way is more painful.'

After a string of curses and complaints from a now dust covered Inuyasha, the group of fighters began their trek down a small dirt road.

* * *

The rest of the day passed without incident. Sango, Miroku, Kagome, and Shippo all chatted about random things as they tried to pass the time, while Inuyasha commanded them from the front. He mostly didn't talk except to tell them to speed it up or complain about the bathroom breaks the others frequently indulged in throughout the day.

To say Inuyasha was always grumpy was a bit of an understatement. About a month ago, he had run off into the woods without a single word. The others had decided against following when they spotted one of Kikyo's shinidamachu floating lazily in the same direction. They began to worry however, when the hanyou didn't come back for two days. Just when they were about to go searching for him, Inuyasha reappeared through the trees taking up his position at the front and said, "Time to leave." He never said anything about his absence or what happened to cause him to be gone that long, and the others decided not to bother him about it. They thought it best to just leave it alone. But ever since his unusual side trip, he had been more irritable and brash than usual.

Kagome had thought long and hard about it and the only conclusion she could come up with was that something rough must have happened between Inuyasha and Kikyo. Usually, whenever they ran into the zombie-like priestess, Inuyasha actually got a mood-boost. He would still be brash, but he would typically act more felicitously towards his companions.

His demeanor as of late, was contrary to the norm that had been established in the past. Though he was no less rude than normal, he seemed a bit irritated about something. As if a bad dream was constantly gnawing on the back of his conscience.

Kagome snapped out of her musings as they neared a fork in the road. The road they had been following since leaving Edo had been taking them west. Now the split would force them to go either north or south. She looked into the distance in both directions to weigh their options.

Tall ominous mountains surrounded by a dark forest loomed ahead to their right. The snowcapped peaks were hidden from view by black storm clouds that swirled and clashed menacingly in mock battle as dangerous flashes of lightning exploded against the rocky cliffs below.

To their left, the trees became scattered to make way for endless fields and rice paddies. Sunlight glistened off of the water in the fields and birds pecked at frogs and small fish that had made their home in the farmers crop.

Obviously, her first choice would have been the serene picture to her left. But as Kagome looked on at the nightmarish painting of nature to her right, she had a foreboding sense that north would be their destination. She vaguely heard her companions discussing their route when she felt a familiar pulse coming from the mountains.

She frowned slightly. 'That's a jewel shard alright. But something doesn't feel right about those mountains.' Another flash of lightning erupted from the black cumulonimbus perched atop the mountain range. It crashed into a rock face causing a huge wave of boulders and debris to tumble perilously down the mountainside. The young miko narrowed her clear blue eyes. 'We'll have to be extra cautious and on guard. Something ancient and dangerous dwells there, and I get the feeling it's not in the mood for pleasant conversation.' Though her miko skills were slightly lacking she could still feel an old power residing in the dark recesses of the mountains. It caused a chill to run up her spine, and she shivered involuntarily.

Sango noticed her friend staring intently in the opposite direction of the one the group had just decided to traverse. Walking over to her, the demon slayer put her hand on Kagome's shoulder. The younger girl jumped, surprised by the soft touch after being in such a pensive state. "Kagome? What's wrong? You ok?"

Kagome blinked and shook herself. "Sorry Sango, I was just thinking."

"Oh, ok well let's head out, so we can get in some more distance before stopping for the night." Sango turned away to head south with the others when Kagome stopped them.

"Wait!"

"What now woman?" Inuyasha slouched and turned around to level a bored albeit slightly annoyed look at Kagome.

She rolled her eyes. "Oh get over yourself Inuyasha. I said wait because I think we need to go that way instead." She pointed north at the stormy mountains.

The rest of the group looked north and then back at Kagome, and then north again. Shippo looked scared, Miroku appeared thoughtful and Sango had a mixed look of surprise and confusion. Inuyasha stared at Kagome as if she had just sprouted wings, a curly tail and a pig snout.

"What? Hey I don't want to go that way either but unfortunately for us, there's a jewel shard in there somewhere." Kagome huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. "I was under the impression you wanted to find jewel shards Inuyasha, but if you don't want to go in the spooky mountains because you're scared, that's fine with me. We'll just let Naraku have that one then?"

The hanyou growled in irritation. "I'm not scared of some stupid ole mountains, wench. You didn't tell me there was a jewel shard in there, so I thought I'd be nice an' take the scenic route! Don't go gettin' bitchy at me when you're the one who didn't speak up."

Deciding that bickering with him wasn't really worth her time, Kagome turned on her heel and began walking up the northern path. Sango followed with her little firecat Kirara perched on her shoulder.

Inuyasha fumed. "Hey don't walk away from me when I'm talking to you, ya bitch!" He made to move towards her when Miroku's hand appeared on the half demon's arm, causing him to turn on the monk. "Miroku, I'm kinda in the middle of something, what is it?"

"I would advise against angering her Inuyasha. She is clearly done with the conversation, and I assume you don't want your face to become reacquainted with Mother Earth, am I correct?" Miroku kept his hand on Inuyasha's arm, giving it a slight squeeze in warning, as his amethyst eyes pleaded with his friend to drop it.

"Feh, whatever. If she wants to play the silent game then fine. See if I care." He shrugged off Miroku's hand and trudged up the path behind the others.

Miroku shook his head and smiled. 'I suppose he'll never learn.' He took up his normal position beside the beautiful demon slayer, mischievously eyeing her backside. 'I suppose I never will either.' He chuckled to himself as his hand snuck up behind Sango. 'I suppose it's like the saying goes though; ignorance is bliss.' And as his hand found the firm bottom it had been questing for, he smiled dreamily as he awaited the punishment that he knew was forthcoming.

* * *

As they neared the mountains, the surrounding forest became thicker and more unruly. The underbrush was dense and twisted, consisting of thorny vines and brambles that snaked their way up gnarled old trees whose growth had been stunted from their own proximity to one another. Dead leaves littered the ground and patches of grass had taken up residence in the middle of the road.

'Obviously this road isn't taken often. Great...' Kagome frowned again as a knot of anxiety formed in her belly. She tucked her hair behind her ear in a nervous habit and pushed her powers outward to sense for danger. Nothing was in the immediate area except for herself and her companions. 'Well that's good, I guess. But I get the feeling we're being watched...' She gazed up at the mountains that loomed ahead. Now that the group of shard hunters had closed some of the distance between them and the dark peaks, the young miko noticed that they were much larger than she had originally thought. 'How are we going to find one shard in all that mess?'

Tearing her eyes away from the mountains, she cast her gaze on her group of friends. Inuyasha had stopped and leapt into a tree to keep watch over the small camp that Miroku and Sango were setting up. Kagome followed suit and began unpacking their food and her bedroll.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome called into the tree.

"Yeah, what ya want?"

"Is there somewhere I can bathe nearby?" Kagome waited for a reply with her arms full of her shampoo, conditioner, towel and night clothes.

The hanyou seemed to take a minute to check the surrounding area. He leaned over the rather large branch he had been sitting on to peer down at Kagome. "Yeah I think there's some water over there a ways." He jabbed his thumb behind him in the direction of the mountains. "Be careful though wench. I don't wanna have to save your ass from some demon. I just got comfortable."

Kagome rolled her eyes and made her way in the direction he had pointed. "Thanks Inuyasha. Nice to know you care." She said sarcastically.

After a few minutes of walking down the path, a slight puff of warm humid air caressed her face. 'Ooh a hot spring!' Kagome immediately turned towards the spring and ventured off the path. She periodically broke twigs at eye level so she could find her way back, and soon found a break in the trees. She smiled in appreciation. A beautiful hot spring lay in front of her.

The hot spring was small but it had two tiered pools, the one above spilling warm mineral enriched water into the deeper pool below. The sun had already set, and now a full moon sprinkled its soft light through the trees, giving the water an unearthly glow.

Kagome slipped off her shoes and stripped herself of her dirty, sweaty clothes. She bent down and dipped her clothes in the warm water, lathering them with some of her shampoo, before rinsing them and wringing them out. After hanging the now clean but wet clothes on a nearby branch, she carefully stepped into the cloudy water, mindful of the slippery rocks beneath her feet.

She found a comfortable spot near the little waterfall and leaned back to relax. "Ahhhh...that's nice." Kagome enjoyed her solitary baths when she could. Though Sango sometimes joined her, the common belief in this era that bathing often was bad for ones health, kept the demon slayer from joining her on most nights. The quiet solitude was welcome this time as Kagome took the opportunity to sift through her thoughts.

A picture of the handsome dog eared boy popped into her head. She sighed wearily. Though she knew Inuyasha was undoubtedly her first love, she was finally coming to terms with the reality of the relationship between them. 'Sure, I love him. But I don't think he will ever be able to love me for who I am.' She suddenly felt depressed. 'I guess I'll just have to let it go and move on. I mean, how can I ever be truly loved if he only sees me as the shadow of his former paramour? I know he cares for me. But maybe... it would be better if we were just close friends.' A frown pulled at her lips. 'But how can I tell him?'

Kagome shook her head and disappeared under the surface of the water. 'I'll tell him when it feels right. No sense in adding tension between us before a battle.'

After resurfacing, she lathered her hair with shampoo and again dove under the water to rinse. She repeated the action with her conditioner but rinsed it out of her hair under the waterfall. As she reached her right hand back to run her fingers through her hair, she accidentally pricked her finger on a jagged piece of rock. Hissing, she yanked her hand in front of her.

"Ouch! Son of a bi-" She cut off her own train of thought as her mouth fell open in awe. The drop of blood that had fallen from her finger into the water seemed to react with the pool's contents. It suddenly became startlingly clear, as if her blood had purified the minerals that once clouded the water. It began to swirl and churn turning the deep red of her blood. Kagome froze in panic.

"What in the hell...?" She mumbled before she gasped when the water rapidly changed hues again. This time, it turned frighteningly white and began to glow brilliantly, giving off a monstrous power surge. The water began to bubble and froth as if it were boiling, but to Kagome's surprise, the temperature never changed.

The young miko began to grow fearful of the pool she was bathing in, and moved to get out. As she was crossing to the side near her night clothes, the white brilliance of the water began to recede towards her body. Growing ever more fearful of the strange pool, she began to scramble to get out, nearly slipping on the rocks below her feet.

Just before she was able to exit the spring, the strange white glow completely disappeared into Kagome's body while the boiling and bubbling of the water abruptly ceased. The girl paused and stared confusedly at the water for a moment before she regained her wits and abruptly jumped out of the spring.

Kagome quickly dried off with her towel and donned her night clothes before grabbing her damp outfit off of the branch she had slung it over earlier. 'Time to cheese it. This place gives me the creeps.' She threw one last bewildered glance back at the pool before hurrying to camp.

* * *

There was a modest stew cooking over a small fire when Kagome returned. The savory aroma brought her out of her fearful and panicky state, and calmed her with its familiarity. Her muscles relaxed and she released a tense breath she hadn't realized she was holding. Plopping herself down by the fire next to Sango, the miko stretched lazily and yawned.

"Have a nice soak Kagome?" Sango asked as she stirred the stew with a small wooden spoon. The demon hunter smiled at her friend and filled a bowl for her. "Here you go, eat up. I have a feeling we're gonna need lots of energy tomorrow." She filled four more bowls for the rest of the group and herself and even fixed a small one for Kirara.

Inuyasha didn't say a word as he scarfed down his portion and quickly returned to his perch in the tree for the night. Kagome shook her head at his anti-social tendencies and instead conversed with Miroku and Sango about the following day.

"We need to be careful when we get into the mountains guys," Kagome began. "I don't know exactly whats up there yet but it's old and definitely not friendly."

Miroku paused, his spoonful of stew inches from his mouth. "Yes, I've felt it too, Lady Kagome. I must say it does make me rather uncomfortable as well. Being on high alert is an amiable idea." As he finished his spoonful, Sango spoke up.

"I don't really know what you two mean by old, but I agree completely. Whatever is up there is dangerous. It doesn't help us any that it has a jewel shard either. We have no idea what that demon can do, so we are basically going in there blind. Personally, I don't like it. I wish we could find a way to scout it out but those mountains look treacherous. Best if we just stick together. Strength in numbers and all that." The demon slayer finished off her stew and set her bowl aside, curling up in her bedroll. "By the way, Kagome, are you feeling ok? You look a little... different."

Kagome set her empty bowl aside as well and snuggled down into her bedroll. "I feel fine Sango- great actually. What do you mean I look different?" Her brow creased in confusion at the slayers words.

"I don't really know. Can't quite put my finger on it. Oh well, maybe I'm just tired." Sango chuckled. "I was fending off a leech all day ya know."

Kagome giggled quietly and raised an eyebrow at Miroku who had gotten into his own bedroll. He smiled innocently and shrugged before burrowing into his blanket.

Shippo had finished his meal earlier and was already sleeping soundly under Kagome's blanket. The miko smiled softly and ran her fingers through his fluffy red hair before laying her head down as well.

Rolling over onto her back, mindful not to squash Shippo in the process, she stared up at the stars. 'Yeah Sango,' She thought as a sleepy haze began to envelop her. 'I feel fantastic considering what happened during my bath. Maybe I just look pale from being frightened... oh well.' She yawned again, this time closing her eyes as she drifted off to sleep.


End file.
